LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A. director of athletics Dan Bridges today announced the hiring of Pat Shine as Interim Head Baseball Coach for the Golden Eagles.
“I'm very happy to have Pat take over the helm of our baseball program,” said Bridges. “He is an excellent recruiter and field coach who has had tremendous success working in some of the top college baseball programs in the country. I have every confidence that the Cal State L.A. baseball program will continue to be successful under Pat's guidance.”
Shine is well-known in the Southern California baseball circles, having served the past two seasons (2005-06) as the top assistant coach across town at UCLA. As the recruiting coordinator for the Bruins, Shine's first recruiting class in Westwood was ranked fifth-best in the country by Baseball America. Last season, UCLA earned the second seed of the Malibu Regional in the NCAA Tournament, finishing with a 33-25 record and third in the Pac-10 Conference. In addition, 12 UCLA players were selected in the major league baseball amateur draft during Shine's two years.
Previously, Shine spent three seasons (2002-04) as assistant coach at UC Irvine under head coach John Savage prior to the duo moving up the 405 freeway to UCLA. In 2001, Shine was part of the revival of the Anteater baseball program following a 10-year hiatus from baseball on the UCI campus. The program reached the NCAA Tournament in just three seasons thanks to their first recruiting class being ranked eighth in the country by Baseball America with 13 UCI players heading to professional baseball.
In 2000, he served as assistant coach at New Mexico, helping coach the Lobos to the Mountain West Conference title. Prior to his year in Albuquerque, Shine spent two seasons (1998-99) as a volunteer coach at California, working with the Bears' outfielders and serving as a hitting/baserunning coach.
Shine also has a great deal of coaching experience in the summer leagues. In 2000, as the pitching coach/interim manager of the Brewster Whitecaps, he led the team to the Cape Cod League tile. From 1998-99, he was manager/pitching coach of the St. Cloud Riverbats in the Northwoods League, leading that squad to the 1998 league title and was named the league's 1999 Manager of the Year.
Shine played collegiately at Whitworth College in Spokane, Wash., before transferring across town to Gonzaga, where he was named a team captain and led the Bulldogs to a third-place conference finish. He earned his Bachelor's Degree in speech communication with a minor in business management from Gonzaga in 1995.
“I am honored to become the next head coach at Cal State L.A.,” said Shine. “The Golden Eagle baseball program has an incredible tradition of success, both as a team as well as sending individuals to the pros. I look forward to continuing the winning tradition that Dave Taylor, John Herbold and previous coaches have established. There is no question the program is on the verge of championship success, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to bring that to the CSULA campus.”
Cal State L.A. ended the 2006 baseball season with a 36-16-1 overall record, tied for the third-highest single-season win total in program history. Cal State L.A. officially tied for ninth in the NCAA, the program's best NCAA finish since the 1977 squad took fourth in the country. Shine replaces Dave Taylor, who took a similar position at Chico State following two seasons at the Cal State L.A. helm.
